Carytown businesses the target of ADA lawsuits
Richmond BizSense has the story of local businesses, including Carytown Sushi, Thai Diner Too, and Plan 9, are being sued for not conforming to ADA requirements. A Midlothian man has been the plaintiff in 32 cases so far.
Carytown Sushi ended up settling, which included $7,000 allocated to repairing a 3-inch step at the entrance and $3,000 in attorney fees.
photo by: bookwyrmm
Looks like he got inspired by California:
http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_27419.html
That’s all Carytown needs, one of these ADA scamming assholes. I know there’s legitimate claims out there, but guys like this are just out to make a buck. I read about a guy who did it in California, he filed suit against hundreds of small stores and restaurants that couldn’t afford to fight the suit. He’d basically roll in and out of a business, in minutes, then go and sue for thousands of dollars. In many cases the business in question even had ramps and accessible bathrooms – only they’d have a flaw like a sink that was one inch too high.
These suits should enable a person to force a business to make changes, but not get personal gain from doing so. Otherwise this crap is encouraged.
Scammers like this give disabled people with real problems a bad name.
Very disappointing. Many of these businesses barely scrape by and in this economic climate…
I hope they can work something out. Nearly all of those businesses mentioned will bend over backwards to accommodate your needs if you simply ask. But where’s the pay day in that?
there’s no need for this; if these businesses aren’t designed to ADA standards, and it becomes an issue, the proprieter could surely work something out with the offended party. Only a truly evil and abominable person would stroll in and bring suit to these small businesses.
bill, did you read the article with the posted link, I do think an actual suit is too far, but does not look like the guy is making a buck off of it…not unless his lawyer is giving him a share of the legal feel, anyway
Fiona, do you honestly think this man won’t keep a piece of these “attorney’s fees?” It’s a known scam. Why else would a man from Midlothian target a bunch of small businesses in a concentrated area?
I can’ t find the article, but the man from California I’d read about did the same thing – they’d call the settlements “attorney’s fees” when it was obvious he was splitting the proceeds.
This jerk eats without incident, doesn’t complain, no problems noticed, then weeks later Woot-woooot-here-comes-the-lawsuit-train.
Tell me that’s not a con.
Now I will add, if a new business is built in this day and age, and doesn’t make themselves fully accessible to begin with, they’re leaving themselves open.
But what Zuckerman does is in bad faith, tucked inside a “civil rights” cover.
Not related, AFAIK, but it looks like Track Restaurant is selling.
http://richmond.craigslist.org/bfs/1071447419.html
http://www.simplyhired.com/job-id/wlpuixybhf/chef-jobs/ (for phone # reference)
Aren’t ADA regulations dependent upon the size of the business? A small mom & pop shop can’t be expected to make the expenditures to cover all ADA regulations.
Also, the free marketer in me says, well, there are other stores that are more accommodating, why not shop there and make businesses that don’t comply change their habits by letting your money (or lack thereof) do the talking?
Also, guy suing isn’t making a dime. Lawyer happily taking the case is making BANK.
I RSS feed this blog, so I didn’t know what the comments would be until I came to post myself… I think everyone’s on the right page. While it’s totally great that we have codes in place to make businesses more accessible to those with disabilities, this reeks of scam and is going to probably put one or more of these places out of business. Screwed if you fight it because of negative publicity and legal fees, screwed if you don’t ’cause it’ll cost you $10k or more apparently.
If I was disabled I would certainly want to go into any establishment that a non-disabled person can go. I shouldn’t have to go to Barnes and Nobles when I really want to go to Plan 9. I’m not sure what the laws are. But if the law states your business needs to be ADA compliant – well then i’m not sure what the problem is here – it’s the law.
Agreeing with Eric (-ish) and Bill’s last post, new businesses should know they are on borrowed time if not ADA compliant, but a pox on the dude from Midlothian if he gets one red cent of legal fee kickbacks
assuming for a minute that his is being trixy, all the crappy chain restaurants out his way are build ada compliant therefore the sport is better in town with the older buildings
This is silly. To legally harass vital local businesses with frivolous lawsuits is bad for business especially in Carytown, the only mall I can think of anywhere made up of (almost entirely) locally owned and operated stores. None of these infractions are worthy of draining a tax paying indigenous business of precious funds. Carytown is a vital part of our economy. Businesses are struggling to survive already. Nobody is suggesting that buildings shouldn’t be kept up to code, but these complaints are pretty benign and disingenuous. $7,000 allocated to repairing a 3-inch step at the entrance and $3,000 in attorney fees. Jesus. And a single, solitary Midlothian man has been the lone plaintiff in 32 cases so far? If that alone doesn’t ring any bells, you aren’t paying attention.
I love Carytown. I brag about it to people who don’t live here. When people from out of town visit me, they always remark how great it must be to live so close to it. I nod my head and agree. Who cares about a 3-inch step that didn’t live up to code? Nobody I know. And if a handicapped person wanted to get into a building on their own, I would think more people then necessary would leap into action to make it possible. I mean, that is the type of world I live in. It’s called Richmond. If nobody else would do it, I most certainly would without even thinking about it. I know it sucks to ask for help and in a perfect world everything would be accessible to everybody, but Carytown is made up of old buildings that give it it’s distinctive flair. It is not Stony Point. Working with businesses to achieve universal access is one thing; a lone man filing 32 legal cases against local businesses in a specific 8 block area in a jurisdiction where he does not live for not conforming to ADA requirements is straight up harassment and fuel for the most believable conspiracy theories…
Its hillarious when big govt. geniuses change there tune when they finnally see the light of an oppressive burreaucracy. Its equally hillarious when a rabid democrat partisan complains about lawyers have corrupted the legal system but lawyers are the biggest contributors to the democratic party. If this isnt the dextbook definition of a ignorance i dont know what is.
Oh Liberty, so wrong again…
yeah Bopst cause you say so, and your rebuttal was scintilating. I agree with your reasoning that business’ should be left to solve the problem of getting cutomers into their stores in common sense ways, but what you FAIL to realize is that lawyers(your lil buddies who control the Dem Party) have exiled common sense from American society. You also cant seem to grasp the fact that these big govt solutions to problems you’re so passionate about follow the law of unintended consequences. So you look like a fool promoting big govt. solutions then bitching about them when i hits to close to home and your panties get all bunched up. I hear wind blowing thru the vacumn of your cranium. peace
This is the 2nd time Liberty has ruined a good debate and discussion. Next time, I’m going to delete the inane comments.
So what is the state of the other 31 cases?
good discussion. Personally, it seems like these places should at least be given warnings that they are out of code before slapped with these fines. Sure, the law may be warning enough, but we all know that there are plenty of places like this that fly under the radar because no one seems to really care. If there are concerned people in our community, we need to start with warnings/discussions not legal suits.
Wow … Liberty, sorry pal you’re straying too far off topic and making no sense while you’re there.
@sam, whats inane? just because you say my comment is inane dosent make it inane. Compete with my argument, dont insult me and then claim I’m ruining discussions on your board. give me a break, My point is too much govt. regulation is problematic. People that think the govt. is the solution to every problem thru inane regulations as our example in Carytown exhibits. You cant be for big govt. (dems) and then complain about big govt at the same time.
If I havent been politically censored by the good liberals. heres something to think about. well Bopst at least try to think…, The great Virginian Thomas Jefferson said, “The bigger the govt. the less the freedom, the smaller the govt. the more freedom” I Hope big brother dosent decide this is too irrelevant to the standards of discussion on this esteemed website.
i am guessing Sam is not as much interested in specifically limiting anyone’s freedom to toss around generalizations and personal attacks as he may be committed to keeping conversation…on HIS blog… specific and relevant.
interesting, though TJ indeed is credited with the earlier quote, he would not likely have shared it directly with many of us reading this blog. He had little patience for women in the discussion of politics and felt that those vested in the country…specifically men of means and property…should be calling the shots.
Great points Fiona. While we can quote the Founding Fathers, their beliefs must be taken in context with the times they were written; we have no way of knowing how those same men would respond in the modern world.
Yes, it is much, much different world. Theorizing on what a man who lived hundreds of years ago would think of modern culture is absurd.
While I agree that places of business should be accessible to the handicapped, this situation is Carytown is ridiculous. It is one man making these legal complaints which, as I said before, should be a giant red flag in itself.
and Carytown isn’t the only place Mr. Fabian is suing:
http://www.chesterfieldobserver.com/news/2007/0404/news/008.html
Its one man…Plus a trial lawyer, so thats two people unless fabian is representing himself. Trial lawyers are the largest contributors to the democratic party. Connect the dots, then do the right thing and vote the bums out, unless you rely on the govt. for your income you better stick with the dumbacrats
@finoa whats wrong with generalizations? or personal attacks, whats the big deal, let people speak their minds however they wish
@Liberty – the problem with both generalizations and personal attacks is that they detract from the issue at hand.
Please also remember that we do have a two party system, both of which should hold equal responsibility for the successes or failures in policy.
Please also remember that there exists a marvel of modern technology known as “spell check” – that’s just advice, not a personal attack. And while I’m sure spell check would not help with the issue, you may want to pay attention to the way posters on the forum actually spell their names.
what is the state of the other suits in Carytown? Anybody know?
Whoa, the bigotry of these comments is pretty overwhelming.
Sorry to jump in so late… I’m an architect and somewhat of an expert on this stuff. My thoughts.
1. This is a case of the fed making crazy laws and not having anyone to police them- the only real policing is civil lawsuits. So, no warnings, no authority to turn to.
2. It’s my understanding that anything existing is “grandfathered in.” BUT, if you change the use of the building, you have to bring it up to code. If you renovate, you have to spend a percentage on ADA upgrades. However, in today’s society, being grandfathered in doesn’t stop a lawsuit, and oftentimes it’s cheaper to fix things than go to court.
3. ADA law is silly. Do you know that if your drinking fountains (yes, all business except restaurants are required to have 2) don’t squirt the water a min. of 4″ above the fountain you are in violation and can be sued? It’s ridiculous.
4. Like most things the gov’t does, it was a royal F-up that had good intentions. Sure, helping the disabled is nice, but you have to be practical and put some balances in place. Big gov’t doesn’t know the meaning of the word practical.
oh, and…
5. at what point do you stop? OK, a guy in a wheelchair can use my drinking fountain. Cool. What about a blind guy in a wheelchair? What about a mentally disabled quadriplegic blind guy with in a wheel chair? At some point, you have to say, these people need help from another person to function in society, and that’s ok. Nobody wants to say that, but I will. The line has to be drawn somewhere.
First off, where is this bigotry in this thread?
I think there has to be some sort of balance here. Get buildings up to code without crippling a business is what I’m thinking would be a good place to start.
What is forgotten about in all these lawsuits is that the ADA requires that businesses make a “reasonable accommodation”.
the other part as pointed out by Wolf is that if renovations are done then the ADA comes into effect. It also depends upon how much renovation takes place.
ever wonder why you see wheelchair slopes at pedestrian crossings out in the middle of nowhere? ADA
this once again is further evidence of the Law of Unintended Consequences at play
I’m all for accommodating disabled pedestrians, but there needs to be balance. It’s like the old civil rights battles in the sense that we, ideally, shouldn’t tell disabled people they can, say, patronize Thai Diner II but not Mom’s Siam (just like in the old days black people should never have been told they could shop at Woolworth’s but not the Five and Dime).
But there’s one huge difference between the two civil rights struggles. The actual cost of accommodating black patrons was next to nothing – all they had to do was take down a few signs reading “whites only”. In contrast, accommodating disabled people according to ADA code can be very expensive. All the buildings in Carytown were built a long time ago. At some point reasonableness needs to be factored into the equation.
And I find the guy’s claim that he’s patronizing all 32 of these businesses he’s sued to be laughable. There’s no way a Midlothian guy really patronizes every single one of these businesses on a regular basis. Obviously when he enters a shop or restaurant, he’s trolling for suckers to sue. Why isn’t he targeting Midlothian businesses? (Or Shockoe Bottom, or Mechanicsville, or Short Pump, or …)
By the way: those of you tying this to the Democratic Party should do well to remember that the original ADA act was championed and signed by George Bush Sr.
Here’s the deal- I own a store in Carytown and received one of Zuckerman’s letters (and am not currently being sued…). My complainant was a woman (who lives in the Norfolk/Tidewater area- or so my google search told me). She’s listed as the complainant on several of the letters.
A business must do what is “economically feasible” and “readily achievable” to make their buildings accessible. The letters that (at least some of us) we received did offer a grace period (and lots of typos).
If it is new construction or renovation to an existing building, the building must be brought up to code. There is NO SUCH THING as being ‘grandfathered.’ Trust me, I researched the heck out of this.
Sure, it’s something I wasn’t expecting and the way they’re going about it leaves little to be desired. I’m fighting to stay alive (retail-speaking). I didn’t budget for this either. Their timing is really bad for us. Check out the vacancy rate in Carytown. I wonder how many are going to be shuttered because they can’t afford to make the changes and/or pay the legal fees.
And even if I DO make the changes, that doesn’t preclude me from future legal complaints. Ain’t THAT a kick in the head?
I’m really sorry to hear that Sam. Is there anything a citizen can do to possibly help?
Thanks for the offer Bobst but I don’t think there’s a whole lot citizens can do.
I sure appreciate the thought.
There are got to be something? A fundraiser or something?
I’m sure that the best way to support these businesses and preserve our unique local shopping areas is by making the effort to buy CDs, books, cards, unique gifts at these stores instead of online or wherever else. Carytown is so great, and like bopst, my out of town guests always want to go. In fact, I was there today with my mom and we hit 8 different stores and had lunch.
Sadly, as the size of government grows (and along with it, the regulations, fees, lawsuits, etc…), small businesses like these suffer the most. Hopefully they will be able to hang in there and I know I’ll be doing my part to support them with my patronage.
(Good points, Wolf.)
Write to the Governor about this legal scam. Doesn’t the Governor claim to want to make Virginia the “most business friendly state?”
Write to the Virginia State Bar to have these plaintiff’s lawyers practices looked into. Are Plaintiff’s receiving kickbacks?
Write to the local media. Do we want a Carytown devoid of the businesses that give it life.
Oh yeah. Similar serial lawsuits were being filed in California… until a Judge blocked the practice without his prior authorization. Perhaps, the Courts should be asked to consider similar action against this group of plaintiffs and lawyers. Also, I would be curious to know of any prior association between the west coast lawyer and/or his Firm and these new attorneys… the Firm in VA or the one in Texas. I wonder what the CA Judge would think about any possible link between these groups of lawyers, if one was found to exist?